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Built into the cliffs overlooking the Suvan Sea, Riverfall resides on the edge of grasslands of Cyphrus where the Bluevein River plunges off the plain and cascades down to the inland sea below. Home of the Akalak, Riverfall is a self-supporting city populated by devoted warriors. [Riverfall Codex]

Claire grunted slightly as Orin mentioned he wasn’t trying to hurt anyone but his own apparition. “It wasn’t so much that you would purposely hurt someone. I was more afraid of someone trying to stop you and getting in the way.” The Akalak was known for keeping the peace in their the city strictly, and she stitched up enough of them to know they’d take the damage in order to keep it that way. “Well Orin, I’m Claire.” The girl tilted her head in the direction of the other man, a silent request for his name as well. The least they could do was exchange names if nothing but for the fact it often brought a little ease knowing someone’s else's name. Freke’s question about someone playing tricks on the man was shot down fairly quickly. Until now it seemed his issues of his father were kept close to heart, and Orin didn’t seem to think he had many enemies within the city. He seemed skeptical that someone would go through the trouble to cause him this much grief.

Luckily Orin seemed more than willing to get directly out of the rain. She followed closely, more worried about his mental state than the fact that he might have another outburst. The poor man looked drained, leaning against the wall under the closet awning. Her eyes shifted to his form as the gnosis mark scaling across her face tingled lightly. There were no physical injuries for her to heal, the raptor knew that. It was the need to ease the inner turmoil of the man that made her mark react—but it hardly seemed the time. Orin was giving another piece of himself as he explained his regret over the loss of the man who, by the sound of it, had spent most of his time torturing his son.

He finished with a question that the Kelvic wasn’t sure she was meant to answer. Once again she felt as if the wrong words—even for the right reasons—could cause more damage than intended. No matter the weapon or the outburst, however, Claire felt the man before her was very different from the man he had described to be his father. She pursed her lips for a moment before taking a leap that she might regret later. “The very fact that you ask that question should give you that answer.”

The raptor sighed and shifted her weight from one foot to another before looking Orin in the eye, despite the emptiness of his gaze. “Our past always has the capability to hurt us. That is one thing I can understand, even if it’s just vaguely compared to yours. The way I see it you could be one of two people. Someone twisted by your past, or someone determined to become better for it. You have the capacity to ask that question. It means you haven’t forgotten.” As if the ghost circling behind her wasn’t proof of that enough.

Shaking her head, Claire gave the man a small smile. “Rest might be your best option right now. Whatever is bringing this to the forefront of your mind, it should end within several bells if it’s caused by some outside force. If it lasts longer than the day you might want to get looked at.” Turning to Freke, she smiled and tilted her head towards the man. “Thank you for the help. I think all three of us has had quite the morning already.” Looking out at the rain, the sound of the drops hitting the ground brought a sense of calm to her insides. Glancing at both boys she gave them a nod before backing out into the rain. “Keep out of trouble yes?” She hoped the light tone of her voice came across as a gentle tease. Turning on her heel the raptor started off down the path she had originally walking before the interruption. She was going to be late for work, but it was well worth.

"I have no doubt you had no desire to harm those here, but . I am please to meet both of you" He said with a slight bow "I am called Freke." Still uneasy about Orin having a weapon while seeing whatever this was, but Claire didn't seem to have a objection. "Please be careful for the next few days. You seem like a decent man, and next time it may be the city guards here." While his contact with the guards was limited, he didn't think they'd mess around if they were called to a man waving a knife.

Agreeing with the decision to get out of the rain Freke followed Claire and Orin to the awning. Reaching over as Orin started to talk Freke placed his hand on Orin's shoulder for a chime than removed it, he didn't understand why but it did seem like the right thing to do. Staying close Freke listened to his story, his heart started to hurt when he heard about the man's father beating him so badly, it didn't mesh with what little he'd been told about fathers, they were supposed to protect their children, not harm them. "I'm sorry he hurt you so" Freke said quietly. "A father shouldn't harm his child like that." Not sure what else to say Freke took a step back

"Some rest might be good" Looking to Orin "I'm sure the children you care for appreciate your care. While what happened to you was horrible, I'm sure your promise has helped many kids" This was complexly out of his element, Up until a few months ago he was a slave, he didn't know what to do or say. With Orin saying he thought his father was finding a way to hurt him Freke turned to Claire, unsure what to say or do. He hadn't dealt with anything like this in his young life "If you don't show him what matters to you he can't hurt you." Not liking talking about this to another Freke shifted a little and was revealed when Claire said her goodbyes. "I must leave as well. Maybe leave the knife at home next time? He added with a hint of a smile, trying to make a joke, before leaving.

Attn Thread partiners: I work in retail and hours are picking up, affecting my ability to be online. I will continue to write and post as much as I can, I just might poof for a couple days because of this

They both seemed incredibly concerned that Orin would’ve harmed someone by mistake, which the chef supposed was a reasonable reaction. After all, if he saw someone screaming and flailing around with a knife he might’ve been concerned as well. “Fair points. Pun not intended. Sorry, I’m exhausted.” His filters were down and he knew that he had a tendency to ramble. “I’m pretty sure that my vision for people who are actually there is just fine, and I...I wouldn’t have harmed someone, even by accident.” He truly, firmly believed that. “I’d have let myself get hurt first, or at least I would under normal circumstances.” That went against the core of who Orin was, and he felt certain that even in whatever state he was currently in, he’d have managed to hold himself back before wounding anyone else. Still, he couldn’t ever really know that for certain.

“It’s nice to meet you both, although I think we can all agree that we wish it were under better circumstances.” Never in a million years would Orin have wanted to make a first impression like this. He just hoped that Claire and Freke would believe him and his explanation that something incredibly odd was at work here. “I’m normally quite mild-mannered,” he commented, monotone. Now that the confrontation was over, Orin found it difficult to bring himself to care about basically anything at all. Still, the more logical parts of his brain insisted that he at least try to salvage a potential relationship with the two of them.

After finishing his story, a silence spread between the three of them, as they considered his tale and Orin simply slumped more, barely able to keep himself upright. All the while, Alexander paced, restless, like a tiger in a cage, and as vicious too. Orin watched out of the corner of his eye, not wanting to give his father his full attention, but unable to look away. Both Claire and Freke offered their condolences. “Thanks you two.” He turned to face Claire. “I think it’d be better if no one, including myself, had to ask the question at all, but I appreciate what you’re saying.” For Freke’s response, the chef paused, trying to figure out the best way to respond. “Should and shouldn’t are complicated concepts. I have no idea what my father was going through – we didn’t talk about it, ever – and so maybe he needed to treat me that way. I just don’t know.” As much as Orin wanted to pass judgment, and usually did, no one as broken as Alexander Fenix or Orin for that matter could be held responsible for all of his or her actions. Sometimes the pieces were too shattered to put back together again.

Orin snorted at the rest of Claire’s response. “Sorry, I know you’re trying to help.” The chef couldn’t make himself believe in optimism just then, even though normally Orin was as hopeful as they came. “History is destined to repeat itself. Like father, like son. A chip off the old block. It runs in the family. Blood is thicker than water, blood will tell, it’s in the blood. Aren’t those all saying the same thing, basically? That as much as we try to escape our family, our past, our upbringing it always catches up to us in the end?” He stared blankly at her as the dark words and sayings dripped from his lips. “That’s what people say, ain’t it? There must be a reason so many people think it’s so, some truth behind all that. That’s what keeps me up at night.” He sighed, realizing that he wasn’t encouraging them in a way that would get them to leave him alone. “But what gets me through each day, besides my faith, is the fight against that, that pull inside. I’ll keep asking, keep striving, keep fighting against the shackles of my past. Not only because I don’t want him to win, but also because it’s not who I want to be.” Orin was a firm believer that belief could move mountains if necessary. As long as he believed in a better future, no matter how depressed he got, he could make it so.

Both of them seemed willing to let Orin go off and rest, for which he was eternally grateful. He wasn’t sure he would be able to spend much time around others for a long while. Nodding at Claire’s words, he saw no reason to respond. There was a lot of wisdom in what she was saying, and Orin was going to follow her advice. “I’ll do that – seek help if necessary and stay out of trouble. Thank you, for taking a risk on me and not labeling me crazy.” It meant perhaps more than she knew. Turning to address Freke, Orin shrugged. “Not as many as I’d have liked, though it’s kind of you to say so. Maybe I can change that, too.” At the other man’s insistence that Alexander couldn’t hurt Orin if Orin didn’t show his father what he cared for, Orin nodded again. He wasn’t going to point out that even if this wasn’t the real Alexander, the man was in Orin’s head now, and probably would never leave.

At Freke’s feeble joke that Orin not bring weapons along, the chef shook his head. “It’s hard enough being a non-Akalak here in Riverfall. If they don’t think you can defend yourself, they won’t respect you.” Waving his Kuvan tattoo lazily, Orin continued. “This doesn’t do it either. But I promise to be more careful about when and why I draw it, in the city at least.” That much he could do, and hopefully it would assuage some of their concerns. With that assurance, they both went off, leaving Orin alone with his father.

Before Alexander could do anything, Orin closed his eyes and did his best to shut off his awareness of the world around him. Breathe. Suiting action to thought, Orin took deep breaths, in through his nose and out through his mouth, trying to calm himself, because, even if his feelings were muted his nerves were raw. He didn’t know how long he stood there, lulled into a sense of timelessness as he listened to the patter of rainfall on the streets. But when he opened his eyes, Alexander was gone, and even that nagging sense that Orin had of his father had faded as well. Tears prickled his eyes again, but he didn’t cry. Thank you, Priskil, for bringing me through another trial. With that thought prevailing in his mind, Orin started the long, slow walk home. He was glad for the rain, actually; he tried to imagine that it was washing off not only these recent events, but also the whole weight of his past, as it had washed away his emotions earlier. Emptiness was the best Orin could hope for right now, as he disappeared off into the water falling from the sky.